Communications

Subject: Public Records Law Request: CPSD CRLS course schedule spreadsheets for multiple years

Email

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, M.G.L. c.66, §10, I hereby request the following records:

List of courses scheduled (planned) at CRLS during the 2017-2018 school year including course code, section number, room number, instructor, time period, and projected enrollment.andList of courses scheduled at CRLS during the 2016-2017 school year including course code, section number, room number, instructor, time period, and current enrollment.andList of courses scheduled at CRLS during the 2015-2016 school year including course code, section number, room number, instructor, time period, and current enrollment.andList of courses scheduled at CRLS during the 2014-2015 school year including course code, section number, room number, instructor, time period, and current enrollment.

I would prefer this information in electronic format in any standard spreadsheet form instead of a tabular printed pdf file, if that is easy and convenient.

I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as we believe this request is in the public interest, as suggested but not stipulated by the recommendations of the Massachusetts Supervisor of Public Records. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.

I expect the request to be filled in an accessible format, including for screen readers, which provide text-to-speech for persons unable to read print. Files that are not accessible to screen readers include, for example, .pdf image files as well as physical documents.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days, as the statute requires.

Online documentation for the Aspen SIS Scheduling system from Follett Software appears to indicate that the master schedule can be easily produced as a report from their software using the Report Menu and can be downloaded in various standard formats incluing the CSV format. (See Aspen SIS Quick Reference Quide.)

Is it possible that the CRLS schedules requested here could be produced in this way without requiring even one hour of work? Perhaps in a fraction of an hour?

Cpsd.us online information indicates that the school system is using the Aspen SIS software for its course schedules.

Thank you for considering the possibility of using the Aspen software to produce the requested documents without the necessity of 10 hours of labor or the associated fee.

It is my hope that by adjusting this request to specifically the master schedule reports that are easily produced from the automated system in active use by the school district, to minimize any cost, delay, or inconvenience to the district in producing such records.

If we are mistaken about the software or version in use by this school district, please be so kind as to reply specifying the type of scheduling software in use and the fields readily downloadable from its standard master schedule reports. We will adjust this request and resubmit accordingly.

Your email dated April 2, 2017 sent to the Superintendent of Schools of the Cambridge Public Schools adjusting the scope of your March 21, 2017 request to only the master schedules reports produced from the school district's scheduling system forschool years 2014-2015 through 2017-2018 has been directed to the attention of this office for response. In response to your request attached please find the master schedule reports for school years 2014-2015 through 2016-2017. Please note thatthese master schedule reports do not simply contain the information with respect to the actual courses scheduled for school years 2014-2015 through 2016-2017as you had requested in your letter of March 21, 2017 and which you still seek in yourmodified request of April 2, 2017. Rather, the attached master schedule reports also contain other non-schedule data fields. These non-schedule data fields, which cannot be omitted when the master schedule report is run, include, but are notlimited to, teacher planning time, classes used as blocks to place hold slots in schedules for group or program scheduling purposes only, online classes, Harvard extension classes, athletics place holders, graduation project place holders, beforeschool and after school groups, independent study tracking, teaching assistant tracking, homework support training, internship tracking and embedded program participation tracking. With respect to your request for a list of courses scheduled atCRLS during the 2017-2018 school year, including course code and section number, please note that Cambridge Rindge and Latin School's Guide to Curricula and Extracurricular Activity can be found at:http://crls.cpsd.us/UserFiles/Servers/Server_3045299/File/academics/CRLS_CourseCatalog_2017.pdf. Please note that the Cambridge Public Schools does not have any documents containing the projected room numbers, instructors, time periods and/orprojected enrollments for courses for the 2017-2018 school year and does not have any master schedule reports for the 2017-2018 school year as the registration process has not yet been completed.

The email and any attachments are intended only for the designated recipient(s) and may contain confidential or proprietary information and/or be subject to the attorney-client privilege or other confidentiality protections. The information isintended for the use of the designated recipient(s). If you are not a designated recipient(s), you may not review, copy or distribute this message or any of its attachments. If you have received this email in error, please notify the sender byreply email and immediately delete this message and any attachments.Pursuant to IRS Circular 230, please be advised that, to the extent this communication contains any tax advice, it is not intended to be, was not written to be, and cannot be used by any taxpayer for the purpose of avoiding penalties under U.S.federal tax law.

Subject: Out of Office Re: Public Records Law Request: CPSD CRLS course schedule spreadsheets for multiple years

Email

I will be out of the office from June 28, 2017 through July 10, 2017. I will not be checking emails during this time period. Please also note that all school district offices are closed on July 4, 2017. If this is an emergency either please call Eileen McHugh at 617-349-6425, or email her at If this is a public records request, please redirect your request to the attention of Jennifer Simpson, the City of Cambridge's Public Records Access Officer at emchugh@cpsd.us and she can redirect you to someone who can assist you in my absence. (mailto:emchugh@cpsd.us) jsimpson@cambridgema.gov (mailto:jsimpson@cambridgema.gov)--